


Spare Parts

by tkjaney



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Co-workers, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Falling In Love, My First AO3 Post, Police Procedural, Slow Build
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-05-22
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:01:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,502
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23678080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tkjaney/pseuds/tkjaney
Summary: ~TEMPORARILY ON HIATUS~ During this time, it feels a little inappropriate to be posting a story about cops. I am still doing some writing, but I will not resume updating until a later time. Hoping everyone is staying safe. ACAB.Tera Washburn is an arson detective in the Detroit Police Department, doing everything she can to climb the ladder at work. It's her dream to work in the homicide division, so she should be thrilled when she is asked to ride along with Lieutenant Hank Anderson, right? Perhaps not. Tera is less than thrilled to find that she is sharing her spotlight with an android, of all things. Given her negative history with androids, will Tera be able to work with this android? Or maybe even learn to love him? [Rated Mature just in case for future chapters! I'm not 100% sure where I want this to go yet.]
Relationships: Connor (Detroit: Become Human)/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 9





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I really suck at beginnings, so I may come back and add more to the beginning of this chapter later!

I stirred the sugar into my coffee and walked over to my desk. It looked like Hank had headed out while I was getting my coffee. Today was especially dull, and Hank was always somebody I could shoot the shit with even though we were in different divisions. It always disappointed me when he left early. While there was a lot of talk that he was washed up and on his way out, Hank was somebody I always looked up to. Despite his… interesting behavior, he had the record to back it up. Some of the younger people on the force just seemed to ignore that.

I had just closed a huge arson case- some guy was so hopped up on Red Ice that he went berserk and burned his dealer’s house down. It kept the guys in Vice from closing that drug bust, which didn’t make them very happy, but at least that shit was off the streets for now. My thoughts were interrupted by an unfamiliar voice behind me.

“Excuse me, Detective Washburn?”

I turned around in my office chair to see a male android standing behind me. Its eyes were a deep brown, and its brown hair was styled similarly to Gavin’s. The android’s face was weirdly friendly, and more human-like than most androids I’d encountered before. The only reason I knew what it was right away was the blue LED shimmering on its temple. _Fuckin’ creepy._

“And what are you supposed to be?” I asked snidely. “And how do you know who I am?”

“My name is Connor, the android sent by Cyberlife,” it replied. “I’m looking for Lieutenant Hank Anderson.”

“Cyberlife, huh? Why are you here?” I asked.

“I was sent by Cyberlife to assist with the investigation of a deviant android,” it said plainly. “I am supposed to be working with the lieutenant.”

“Well he’s not here,” I said, turning my tablet back on to check my new assignments. The android didn’t move and kept staring at me. I tried to ignore it.

“Excuse me, but does Lieutenant Anderson usually leave early?” The android asked.

I sighed. I did not want anything to do with this “Connor.” I set down my tablet and swiveled towards him again.

“I imagine he leaves whenever he feels like he has something better to do,” I said. “He doesn’t always follow instructions. I imagine that can be frustrating for someone like you. Now will you stop bothering me? I have work to do.”

“Actually Detective,” it said. “I asked you specifically because it appears that you do not have any work to do.”

“What the…”

I swiped through my tablet. No new assignments. And my paperwork was gone. The android was right. The bastard must’ve scanned my tablet. I looked back up at it, dumbfounded.

“And by the way,” he added. “I saw your nameplate. That’s how I knew your name.”

_Fuckin’ androids_.

I put my tablet down, turned back to my desk, and downed the rest of my coffee. I didn’t drink coffee frequently and usually only had it when it was the only thing available. I clearly did not put enough grounds into the coffeemaker. The “coffee” tasted like what pasta water smells like. I looked at the android, who still had not moved. It just stood there like a dog begging at the dinner table. But while it was here, I figured I would see if it was good for something after all.

“Hey, Connor,” I said. It looked back at me and raised its eyebrows in acknowledgement. “Do you know how to make coffee?”

“That’s not in my program.”

“That’s too bad,” I mumbled, disappointed.

“Detective Washburn!” I turned in my seat and saw Captain Fowler standing in the doorway in his office, waving me to come over. I stood up and walked to his office. By the time I got there, the Captain was seated at his desk.

“You may close the door behind you,” he said. I shut the door and sat across from him.

I wrung my hands in my lap. I didn’t get called in to the Captain’s office very often, and the fact that my tablet had been wiped right beforehand didn’t make me feel very confident. I looked over at Connor. It was still hanging around my desk, its LED flashing yellow.

Was Connor replacing me?

No. It wasn’t possible. Was it? There hadn’t been any kind of detective android before. But was Connor a prototype? It was so much more lifelike than most other androids at the station. I blinked hard and tried to snap out of my stupor. But I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

_This couldn’t happen. Not again._

“What can I do for you, sir?” I asked, trying to stay composed.

“I want you to do a ride-along with Hank and the android tonight,” the Captain said. “There’s been a homicide, and we suspect the victim’s android was involved. I was really impressed with how quickly you closed that last arson case, so I want you to tag along and keep an eye on that android.”

I looked back at Connor through the glass wall. It stood silently next to my desk. I wondered what it was thinking. Did androids even think? Or was it just standing there, mind blank? I waited a moment before I answered the Captain.

“Am I being replaced?” I asked.

“For God’s sake, Tera! I want you to assist Lieutenant Anderson with his investigation, and make sure the android doesn’t screw up the crime scene,” he replied. “I uploaded the report to your tablet. Share it with the android. Best of luck.”

“But sir-”

“Tera. Go. Find Hank,” he replied. “That’ll be the end of it.”

I took a deep breath and left the Captain’s office. Gavin was waiting at the bottom of the steps.

“What did he have to say?” he asked.

“You see that android over there?” I pointed at Connor. Gavin nodded. “Gotta make sure the shiny new toy doesn’t fuck up the investigation.”

“A fuckin’ android? Whose investigation is this?”

“Hank’s. There was a homicide, potentially involving an android. Apparently, that android over there is supposed to be some kind of deviant hunter.”

“Yikes. First the manufacturers, then the taxi drivers. I guess it’s us next. Good luck finding Hank, I hear he’s real messed up recently,” Gavin said, smirking in his typical snide fashion.

“Well, I guess if I’m gonna be on babysitting duty, I might as well be all in,” I quipped back. Gavin patted my shoulder and pushed me over towards my desk.

“Go get ‘em tiger,” he said, turning away. “Think of it as your next step towards the homicide division.”

Gavin was right. And he knew how badly I wanted that promotion. Everyone did. Sure, Gavin pissed a lot of people in the precinct off. He was rude, inconsiderate, and foul. But he was a damn good cop. And he didn’t used to be this way.

I walked to my desk and saw Connor just standing there, a blank expression on its face.

“Hello?” I asked, waving my hand in front of its face. “You still there?”

“Yes, Detective Washburn,” it replied. “I was simply running a systems diagnostic.”

I opened up the case file and handed my tablet to it.

“Scan this, or whatever it is you do,” I said. The LED on its temple flashed and spun in yellow circles. It handed me my tablet back.

“Are you coming along?” It asked.

“Yes,” I said. “But we have to find Hank first.”


	2. Chapter 2

By the time we left the office, it was well after 9 o’clock. The air outside the station was brisk. It was November, and signs of the impending winter were already beginning to roll in. I zipped up my jacket and rubbed my hands together to keep them from getting cold. I pulled out my cell phone and started walking towards Jimmy’s. After searching through my contacts, I found Hank’s phone number and dialed. The phone rang twice before sending me to his voicemail.  
“This is Hank. If I missed your call it was probably because I didn’t want to talk to you in the first place. Leave a message if you feel like it, but I can’t guarantee I’ll respond if I didn’t answer your call in the first place.”  
Yeah, that sounded like Hank. I tried calling twice more, but he didn’t pick up. Bastard. I decided to leave him a voicemail, but if his message was true, he definitely wasn’t going to listen to it.  
“Hi Hank, it’s Tera. You just got assigned a homicide case, and the Captain wants me to come with. We have another guest with us, but it’ll be easier to explain in person. Please let me know which bar you’re at so we can get going. If you don’t hurry, the body’s gonna half-rotted by the time we get to the crime scene.” I hung up the phone and slid it back in my pocket.  
“Detective, have you learned where Lieutenant Anderson is?” Connor asked.  
Shit. I almost forgot Connor was here.  
“No. He’s not answering his phone. Knowing Hank, I think it’s safe to assume that he’s at a bar. I think I know the one. It’s called Jimmy’s Bar and Hank is there all the time,” I said, walking in the direction of Jimmy’s. I looked over at Connor, its LED flashing yellow again. Did it do that every time?  
“Detective, I’ve found fifteen nearby establishments that serve alcohol,” Connor said. “Jimmy’s is a mile away. I believe we should look in the nearest ones first.”  
“I’m telling you Connor, he’s at Jimmy’s,” I said impatiently.  
“Ma’am,” Connor said.  
“Please don’t call me ma’am, I’m only 29,” I interrupted.  
“Detective Washburn, I’m afraid I must insist,” it said. “I would certainly find it regrettable it if didn’t bother checking the nearest places on the way.”  
“Aren’t you supposed to listen to me?” I asked, rolling my eyes.  
“I was programmed to follow instructions, and both sets of instructions I received were conflicting, so I prioritized the more important instructions. Now if you will allow it, I would like to stop at Derry’s first. It is at the end of this block,” it said.  
I didn’t know they programmed these things to be assholes too. Guess you learn something new every day.  
“Fine,” I huffed. “But make it quick. If Hank is drunk by the time”  
We walked quickly to the end of the block and into Derry’s. It was an old Irish pub, and it was mostly empty. And it was pretty big as well. This was not Hank’s kind of place at all.  
“He’s not going to be here,” I said to Connor.  
Connor was silently scanning the room as we walked towards the bar. The bartender was a woman a little younger than me.  
“Hey, no androids!” she yelled as we approached. I pulled my police badge out of my pocket and showed it to her.  
“It’s with me,” I said. She looked at Connor suspiciously. “We’re looking for a guy named Hank Anderson. Older guy, gray hair.”  
“Honey, that’s most of our clientele,” she replied, still glaring at Connor. “Please get that thing out of here, or we’re gonna lose customers.”  
I looked over at Connor, who was looking around the whole bar. Its LED was flashing yellow again.  
“He’s not here,” it said.  
“Please get out,” the bartender said.  
“Come on, Connor,” I said.  
Once we had left Derry’s, I started walking towards Jimmy’s. Connor followed me closely. We stopped in two more bars on the way. It was late on a Friday night, so both of them were packed and getting more and more full. Neither of the places were Hank’s speed, and again, we wasted a ton of time scanning the crowds for him. By the time we left the third bar, we'd been looking for Hank for two hours. To make matters even more frustrating, he still wasn’t answering his phone. We were about two blocks away from Jimmy’s when we started to pass by a nightclub with a long line out the door. A bunch of women were dressed up in sequins and pearls, clamoring to get inside.  
“I suppose you wanna do a walkthrough,” I said sarcastically.  
“Actually, yes,” Connor said. “We are almost at Jimmy’s, but I don’t think it would hurt to do a walkthrough.”  
Why did I say anything??  
“Fine, but we have to be fast,” I said. “Hank’s not answering his phone.”  
Connor and I walked up to the bouncer, who was sitting on a stool outside of the club’s main entrance. He was very muscular, with a big vein bulging out of his forehead. His hairline was next to non-existent, and he had a large tattoo on his neck. It was a blue triangle, but it was upside-down and crossed out in blood-red ink.  
“Detroit Police Department,” I said, showing my badge.  
“You got a warrant?” He asked.  
“I’m looking for my partner,” I said. “I haven’t been able to get a hold of him and we think he’s in the area. We just want to do a walkthrough.”  
Connor walked up to my side.  
“Sir, we are investigating a homicide, and it would be in the public’s best interest to-”  
“Jesus Christ, you even got these assholes infiltrating the police force now,” the bouncer said, interrupting Connor. He stood up and got up in Connor’s face. He was much larger than Connor and made me feel tiny by comparison. And I was not short by any means. He shoved Connor backwards and threw him off balance.  
“What the fuck are you gonna do about it, you plastic prick?” he asked, his lip curling. I suddenly realized the blue triangle in the bouncer’s tattoo was the Cyberlife logo. I threw myself in front of Connor.  
“Hey asshole! You damage my android, then I arrest you for interfering in my investigation, and you pay to get it fixed,” I said firmly. The bouncer paused, but didn’t back down.  
“Unless you got a warrant, then get the fuck out of here,” he said angrily.  
“Let’s go Connor,” I snarled, refusing to break eye contact with the bouncer. I grabbed its arm and pulled it along. It was just after eleven o’clock, and this fight wasn’t worth the time. I let go of his arm.  
“A lot of people are uncomfortable around androids, Connor,” I said. “Don’t butt in like that unless you really think I need the help. I can handle myself.”  
“Understood,” it replied. Between the two of us, nothing was said for a few minutes.  
“Detective,” Connor said. “In the future, can you not refer to me as ‘it’?”  
“What?”  
“An ‘it.’ You referred to me as ‘it’ multiple times tonight,” Connor continued. “It will help best if you refer to me as a male, it will help with my program integration more smoothly.”  
I stopped walking and Connor stopped next to me. I didn’t think the android was that aware of what I was saying. I didn’t even realize I was calling him that either.  
“Sorry,” I said quietly. “It won’t happen again.”  
We started towards Jimmy’s again.  
“I can detect in your body language that you are uncomfortable, Detective. Would it help if you told me more about yourself?” Connor asked, quickly changing the subject.  
“I’m not uncomfortable, Connor,” I snapped. “Look, you already know everything about me that you need to. My name is Tera Washburn, I’m 29, and I’m a detective with the Detroit Police Department,” I said tersely. “I can’t imagine that anything else is that important.”  
“My programming is designed to be adaptable and personable to work with multiple partners,” he said. “I want to be able to work with you, and the best way I can do that is by getting to know you better.”  
I stopped and looked at Connor for a moment. He turned to face me and smiled. He had a nice smile, for an android. I put my hands in my pockets and started walking again.  
“Are you uneasy around me?” He asked.  
“No,” I lied.  
“I understand that some people are uncomfortable around androids-”  
“Connor.” I said sternly. I paused and took a deep breath.  
“I’ve lived in Detroit pretty my whole life,” I said. “My parents were teachers but they both retired to Florida about ten years ago. I graduated from UMich in ’31 and joined the DPD right after graduation. I’ve been an arson detective for two years and I’m hoping to move into the Homicide division. I have an older sister named Caroline and a ten-year-old niece named Emma. Is that satisfactory enough for you?”  
Connor’s LED was glowing again. A dark look crossed his face… Almost like he knew what had happened back in August. But how could he? That was a different android.  
“Yes,” he replied after a brief pause. “Thank you, Detective.”  
We walked the rest of the way to Jimmy’s in silence. Surely enough, Hank’s jalopy was parked in the parking lot when we arrived.  
“That’s Hank’s car,” I told Connor. “He’s here. Why don’t you go in and find him?” I needed a Connor break. Connor nodded and walked inside Jimmy’s. Did he even know what Hank looked like?  
“Whatever,” I mumbled to myself. The more time I got to myself, the better. Connor clearly meant well, but damn he could be annoying.  
I pulled a cigarette out of my pocket and lit it. I only started smoking when I joined the force, and I only did it when I was stressed out. It helped me relax. As I worked away at my cigarette, I tried to imagine what it would be like to do actual detective work side-by-side with an android. I didn’t necessarily hate androids, but every time I was around one, I couldn’t stop thinking about John and Emma.  
“You know detective, smoking isn’t good for you and can lead to various types of cancer.”  
God damn it.  
“Back already, Connor?” I asked, turning around. Connor was standing behind me, alone. “Where’s Hank? Is he not here?”  
“He’s in there,” Connor replied, “but I believe he is uncomfortable coming with me, so I told him I would wait outside until he was ready to come.”  
“Did you buy him a drink?” I asked.  
“No,” Connor said. “I hadn’t considered it. But I don’t know if it’s a good idea. I don’t want to further delay our departure.”  
“Go back in and buy him a drink,” I said. “Contrary to whatever your programming is telling you, it might make him come out faster.”  
Connor looked at me, confused.  
“I’ll come with you,” I said. I took one last drag from my cigarette and stomped it out on the ground. We headed for the door and stepped inside.  
Connor opened the door for me and I stepped inside. Hank was slouched over the bar, swirling the liquid inside his glass. Connor walked up to Hank, leaning against the bar.  
“Weren’t you gonna wait outside?” Hank grumbled.  
“You know what, Lieutenant? I’ll buy you one for the road,” he said, looking up at Jimmy. “Bartender, the same again, please!”  
“See that, Jim? The wonders of technology,” Hank said to Jimmy. Hank glanced over and saw me in the doorway. I offered him a slight smile. “Make it a double. Did you say homicide?”  
Jimmy poured another drink and Hank quickly threw it back. He stood up, not as wobbly as I expected. Connor slid some cash across the bar and followed Hank towards the door.  
“Why couldn’t you tell me this ‘guest’ was a fucking android?” he asked quietly as he passed through the doorway.  
“So you did get my voicemails,” I said.  
“You smell like cigarettes.”  
“And you smell like booze.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm planning on trying to pump out the next chapter tonight! I'm bored in quarantine so this is literally all I am doing.


	3. Chapter 3

We arrived at the crime scene at around midnight. The house was in one of the more run-down neighborhoods in Detroit. The industrial revolution that brought us androids was fantastic for the larger companies in Detroit, but it put a lot of working-class people out of work. A lot of the folk that lived in these neighborhoods were directly affected by these mass layoffs. Hank parked the car and turned to the back seat where Connor was sitting.  
“You wait here,” he said. “Tera and I won’t be long.”  
“My instructions are to accompany you to the crime scene, Lieutenant,” Connor replied, trying to be diplomatic.  
“Listen,” Hank said impatiently. “I don’t give a fuck about your instructions. I told you to wait here, so you shut the fuck up and wait here. Come on Tera.”  
Hank and I got out of the car and walked towards the house. I turned to back to look at Connor, but he had already gotten out of the car.  
This jackass really doesn’t listen.  
I stopped and waited for him.  
“You really don’t listen to instructions, do you?” I asked.  
“As a matter of fact, I’m prioritizing my instructions from Cyberlife,” he replied.  
“Jesus,” I mumbled. “Come on.”  
We walked to the barricade tape line. A small gaggle of press had already shown up to the crime scene. If we had gotten here earlier when we actually got the call, perhaps we would have beaten them here. A small woman came up to me, her press badge displayed around her neck.  
“Can you confirm this is a homicide?” she asked, shoving her recorder in my face.  
“I’m not confirming anything,” I said. I walked through the barricade with Connor closely behind me.  
“Typical DPD,” she muttered. “They don’t tell us shit.”  
The officer at the barricade put his hand on Connor’s chest as he tried to pass.  
“No deviants beyond this point,” he said. That must have caught Hank’s attention, because he turned around.  
“He’s with me,” he said. The officer dropped his hand and let Connor pass.  
“What part of stay in the car don’t you understand?” Hank asked, then turning to me. “And why didn’t you stop him?”  
“Your order contradicted my instructions, Lieutenant,” Connor said. Hank huffed.  
“You don’t talk, you don’t touch anything, and you stay outta my way,” said Hank. “Got it?”  
“Got it,” Connor said.  
“Evening, Hank,” said the officer standing in the doorway. “We were starting to think you weren’t gonna show.”  
“Yeah, that was the plan until these assholes found me,” Hank said, looking at Connor and I.  
Connor followed closely behind him, but I grabbed his arm to stop him.  
“Look, Captain Fowler brought me along so I could keep an eye on you. It’ll be a waste of time for both of us if you don’t get to investigate with the Lieutenant.”  
“So what are you suggesting, Detective?” he asked.  
“Just go in there and do your thing,” I said. “Just please don’t interfere with Hank. You can come talk to me if you don’t want to deal with the Lieutenant.”  
“I assure you Detective, the last thing I want to do is cause any problems."  
Connor went inside the house, and I followed closely behind him. Admittedly, I was curious to see how he worked. Since I’d met him, the only things I had seen him do were pissing off bouncers and disobeying direct orders. Time to see if this prototype could actually be a detective.  
As soon as I crossed the threshold of the house, I gagged. The body was slumped against a wall, half rotted. Above him, there were words painted in his blood in perfect handwriting.  
I AM ALIVE.  
The house smelled awful. I tucked my face into my shirt and coughed. I walked over to Hank while Connor kneeled next to a puddle of the victim’s blood.  
“Smells fucking disgusting, but you gotta get used to it if you wanna be in homicide,” he said.  
“Hey Connor,” I said. “Can you smell that?”  
“I could, if I needed to,” he answered. “But I can turn my senses on and off at will.”  
“Shit, I wish I could do that,” I said.  
Connor walked over to the body and stared at it for a few seconds.  
“He was stabbed,” he said. “Twenty-eight times.”  
“Seems like the killer really had it in for him,” Hank said nonchalantly. Connor stood up and read the writing on the wall.  
“This is Cyberlife’s font,” he said.  
I watched as Connor reached out towards the writing. He dipped his finger in the victim’s blood and…. Licked it????  
“Fuck!” I exclaimed.  
“Ah Jesus! What are you doing???” Hank shouted, equally as shocked as me.  
“I’m analyzing the blood! I can check samples in real time,” he replied casually, as if we didn’t just watch him literally drink the victim’s blood. “I’m sorry, I should have warned you.”  
“Look,” Hank said. “Please just… don’t put any more evidence in your mouth.”  
Hank walked over to the kitchen, where the murder weapon was laying on the ground. I looked over at Connor.  
“Didn’t realize you were the fucking Terminator,” I said.  
“I’m sorry?” Connor said. “I’m afraid I don’t understand what you mean.”  
“It’s a movie. There’s this robot who comes back in time to kill this lady?” I said. He was clearly confused.  
“There's this scene where it.... Ah, never mind,” I sighed.  
I watched Connor as he looked at all the evidence. The speed and efficiency at which he went around the living room and kitchen was kind of incredible to watch.  
“There were no fingerprints on the murder weapon,” he said. “But there was thirium on the bat in the kitchen, as well as the victim’s fingerprints. And there were traces of Red Ice in the victim’s blood.”  
The victim must’ve been high on Red Ice and beaten his android until it snapped. But how? Androids aren’t supposed to feel pain- or emotions for that matter.  
“The vic must have been high and attacked his android,” I said.  
“Its programming was likely overwhelmed by the damage it sustained and it retaliated,” Connor said. “The victim clearly showed signs of struggle in the kitchen and there are no fingerprints on the weapon.”  
“That’s really impressive, Connor,” I said. “I wasn’t expecting you to be able to make those connections.”  
“Thank you,” he said.  
“You should go talk to Hank about what you’ve seen,” I said.  
I watched Connor as he went over to Hank and told him what he believed happened. It was kind of incredible, and you could even see how impressed Hank was. Ever since Hank lost his son, I didn’t think it was possible for him to even talk to an android.  
“… which means the android might still be in the house.” I heard Connor say.  
My heart dropped to my stomach. The android was here? In the house? My hand reflexively went to the gun on my belt. I turned around and looked down the hallway. Had we even looked down there?  
This was my chance to prove myself to the Lieutenant. If I could capture or kill the deviant, perhaps that would put me in the Lieutenant's good graces and he would recommend me for that promotion. I slowly started towards down the hall. There was only one door, on the right side of the hallway.  
“Tera! Where are you going?” yelled Hank.  
I ignored him and kept going down the hall. There was only one door in the hallway and it was wide open. I got to the threshold and slowly entered, my weapon drawn. It was a bathroom, and it was just about as disgusting as the rest of the house. There was soap scum all over the sink and the toilet was visibly dirty from the doorway. The last thing that I noticed was that the shower curtain was drawn.  
“Is anybody in here?” I yelled. “Come out!”  
I slowly approached the shower curtain, my heart racing in my chest. I was stupid to come in here myself. I’d never even seen a deviant in-person before, and I’d never been trained to fight one. If it was in here and it attacked me, I would have no choice but to kill it. I reached out for the shower curtain and quickly yanked it back. To both my disappointment and my relief, the android was not in there. However, the walls were covered in some sort of strange writing and there was a small hand-carved statuette on the shower floor.  
rA9.  
What the hell was rA9?  
“Detective?”  
I nearly jumped out of my shoes. Connor was standing right beside me.  
“Don’t sneak up on me like that!” I said, trying to act as nonchalant as possible. Even though Connor was an android, he probably saw right through that.  
“Sorry Detective,” he said. “I was tracing the android’s blue blood trail and came down the hallway to investigate. Its path ends at the end of the hallway.”  
I took a deep breath and pointed at the shower wall.  
“This looks like some kind of shrine. Do you know what rA9 is?” I asked.  
Connor looked for a few moments.  
“No,” he eventually answered. “But I don’t think this is insignificant. This is obsessive writing and could give us a clue into the killer’s logic.”  
“We should probably have them bag this as evidence anyway,” I said. “Where did you see the blue blood trail? I couldn’t see it.”  
“It’s invisible to the naked eye after a few hours,” he said. “I can only see it because I’m an android.”  
“Of course,” I said. I looked out the bathroom door and saw the entrance to the attic was open. I tapped Connor on the shoulder. “Do you think it’s in the attic?”  
“Yes,” he said. “I have to get up there.”  
Connor abruptly walked out of the bathroom and down the hall. I heard some complaining from Hank, but Connor quickly came back down the hallway with one of the kitchen chairs. He set it down beneath the attic entrance and hoisted himself up.  
“This fuckin’ thing,” I muttered to myself. I waited underneath the attic door. I couldn’t hear anything at first, but then I heard feet scuffling above me. Connor was not alone up there. I went to climb on the chair, but a hand on my shoulder stopped me. It was Hank.  
“Don’t go up there,” he said. “Androids are expendable. You’re not. If it comes down here, we’ll be ready.”  
Hank moved me aside and tried to look inside the attic.  
“Connor! What the fuck is going on up there?”  
“It’s here, Lieutenant!” Connor shouted.  
“Holy shit,” Hank and I both said quietly.  
“Chris! Ben! Get your asses in here!” he shouted.


	4. Chapter 4

Hank drove the three of us back to the station for questioning. Apprehending the deviant was easy enough- it came quietly, which I wasn’t expecting at all. I had never seen an android be questioned before, so I was curious about how it was going to work. Connor could easily just probe its memory, but it was entirely possible that we’d have to be more nuanced than that. I knew next to nothing about androids. Once we pulled into the station parking lot, Hank turned back to face Connor.

“Look, we’re gonna be interrogating this thing,” he said, looking back and forth between Connor and me. “I don’t know how responsive it’s going to be, so I want both of you in there.”

“Understood, sir,” Connor said. I nodded as well. Hank got out of the car and started towards the station entrance. Connor reached for the door handle, but I grabbed his wrist.

“Hold up,” I said.

“What is it, Detective?” he asked. “We shouldn’t delay.”

“For the 7 or so hours that I’ve known you, you haven’t been able to shut the fuck up. But you didn’t talk this entire car ride. What’s your deal, Robocop?” I asked. Connor looked at me, his face completely devoid of expression.

“I’m not sure what you mean, Detective,” he said plainly.

“How many Connors has Cyberlife manufactured? Is there a little ‘Connor Army’ waiting back at Cyberlife HQ?” I asked. Connor waited a moment before responding.

“I’m a specialized model allocated to assist detectives such as yourself in investigations specifically relating to deviant androids,” he said. “I was created to collect data for Cyberlife so our engineers may understand the software errors that are causing deviancy in androids. Is that the answer you were looking for?”

“You know what I meant,” I said. “And speak English.”

“If you are concerned about being replaced by me, you shouldn’t be,” he continued. “I wasn’t designed to be law enforcement officer. In fact, this investigation was 20% more effective because of you. I even made a special note in my report to Captain Fowler about your discovery of the shrine in the bathroom. I believe it’s valuable evidence that will help further our overall investigation.”

“Wait. If you’re just here to help Cyberlife, then why are you making reports to the Captain?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at him.

“Detective, I was present and heavily involved in this investigation,” he said. “Why would I not add my own observations to the report?”

I loosened my grip on his arm. I felt a weird mix of encouragement and embarrassment after what Connor had just said to me. Did he do that on purpose?

“Let’s go,” I mumbled.

I let go of Connor and got out of the car. He followed me closely as we went towards the entrance. We walked into the station and into the interrogation room, where Hank was already questioning the deviant android. Gavin was skulking in the corner with Chris. I walked over to the wall and leaned against it.

“Hey, Gav.”

“Tera,” he said quietly. He looked over at Connor and glared at him. “What the fuck is that thing doing here?”

“He came with us to the crime scene,” I said. “Found where the deviant was hiding and everything.”

“Jesus,” Gavin muttered. “Now they’ve got these things gearing to replace us too.”

“Connor assured me that he’s not here to replace us-”

“You’re gonna take the word of that fuckin’ _thing_ over what we’ve been experiencing for the last fifteen years?” Gavin asked, astounded. “You can’t possibly be that stupid.”

“Don’t call me stupid, asshole,” I said sternly. “Fowler said the same thing. Do you trust our Captain or not?”

Gavin folded his arms and leaned back against the wall. That seemed to shut him up. Suddenly, my phone started to ring. I pulled it out of my pocket. It was Caroline. And it looked like I had already missed four calls from her.

_Shit._

“I got to take this,” I said. “I’ll be right back.”

I hurried out of the room, guilt weighing down on me. I was supposed to babysit Emma tonight and I forgot. Caroline (understandably) was still really broken up over John, and now I had fucked up and left little Emma all alone in their apartment. She was going to be furious.

“Hello?”

“What the fuck, Tera?!” Caroline exclaimed. “I came home and Emma was hiding in her closet! She said you never showed up!”

“Caroline…”

“She was all alone!” She yelled.

“Caroline,” I said. “I got assigned a big case last minute and I forgot to call you.”

“How could you?! You KNOW what happened to her! You KNOW how afraid she is to be back in the apartment! Christ, this was only three months ago! What is WRONG with you?!”

“Caroline! I’m sorry!” I shouted just so she could hear me. “I should have called you as soon as I got the case and found somebody else to watch her. This is my fault. Can I talk to Emma?”

Caroline waited a moment before answering me.

“You know, she still sleeps in my bed with me,” she said, considerably quieter now. It sounded like she was starting to cry.

“I know,” I said.

“I’ll give Emma the phone,” Caroline said.

“I love you, Caroline,” I said.

“I love you too. Here’s Emma.”

It was a moment before Emma got the phone.

“Hello?” she asked meekly. She just hadn’t been the same since August. The Emma that I had known was always so happy and sweet. Quick to trust, and loved talking to anyone. Now she was shy and anxious.

“Hey, doll,” I said.

“Hi, Aunt Tera,” she said after a moment.

“I’m sorry I forgot to come hang out with you, sweetie,” I said, trying to be soothing. “I got put on a case. I should’ve called your mommy, but I forgot. It won’t happen again.”

“It’s okay…”

“No, it’s not,” I said. “I won’t do it again. Are you gonna be okay?”

“Yeah.”

“I love you so much, doll,” I said.

“I love you too,” she said. “Mommy wants to talk to you again.”

As I waited for Emma to hand the phone back to Caroline, I looked back towards the observation room. I really wanted to be in there, but this call was important. I had really screwed up by leaving Emma alone at the apartment.

After the incident back in August, Emma and Caroline had stayed with me for a few months. Neither of them wanted to be back in that apartment, but it was time for them to go back. It had been a few months and my tiny apartment wasn’t big enough for the three of us. Caroline and I led incredibly different lifestyles, and we were driving each other nuts.

“Tera?”

“Hey, Caroline?” I said. “I need to get going. I’ll call you tomorrow on my break.”

“Okay,” she said. “I’ll talk to you then.”

I hung up and slid my phone back into my pocket and went back into the observation room. Hank was sitting over by the speaker, staring intently through the two-way mirror. I walked over to him and looked into the interrogation room. Connor was sitting across from the deviant.

“What the fuck is going on?” I asked.

“Hank’s letting his toy have a go at the suspect,” Gavin cut in.

“Connor is interrogating the deviant?” I asked, stunned.

“Neither Gavin or I could get a peep out of it, so I figured it was worth a try,” Hank said.

“So why doesn’t he just probe its memory?” I asked.

“Something about stressing it out,” Hank said. “Said it could cause it to self-destruct.”

“This is a waste of time,” Gavin scoffed. “What if Robocop goes deviant too?”

“That’s not how it works, Gavin,” I snapped.

Part of me felt protective of Connor. Sure, I had only known him for a few hours, but he did practically solve the case by himself. He could be valuable in stopping this sudden surge of deviant androids. I sat down next to Hank as I watched Connor continue to interrogate the deviant. And he was doing it brilliantly. However, my attention kept getting drawn to the suspect. It just looked so human. If you ignored the damage to its arms, you wouldn’t even be able to tell that it was an android. I thought about the August incident.

I had met Caroline’s android many times before everything went down. He was very sweet and gentle with Emma. She loved him. They all did. And he loved them back. But he wasn’t functioning properly anymore. He’d forget to do certain chores, and he broke a few things. The fact was that he was out-of-date and needed to be replaced. And that fear of being replaced is what made him snap. I thought about Connor.

Could he ever become deviant? No. Daniel was programmed to be a caretaker. He was emotional by design. Same with this deviant android. Connor on the other hand? He was too much of a stubborn asshole to become deviant.

“Holy shit,” Hank said, interrupting my train of thought. “He got him.”

My god. Connor got the confession. I stood up and followed Hank, Chris, and Gavin into the interrogation room. Connor stood by the doorway as we entered. I stopped next to him.

“How did you do that?” I asked.

“I just used all the information that I had at my disposal,” he replied, looking over at me. “Unfortunately, he didn’t give me much to work with regarding rA9. I suspect that may come up if we end up investigating any other deviant androids.”

“Well thanks for asking,” I mumbled to myself. Was Connor coming back to work with us again?

“Leave me alone!” the deviant suddenly interjecting.

Connor immediately ran over to the table, where Chris and Gavin were attempting to force it from its chair.

“You shouldn’t touch it! It’ll self-destruct if it feels threatened,” Connor said, trying to be diplomatic.

“Stay out of this, got it?” Gavin scolded. “No fuckin’ android is gonna tell me what to do.”

“You don’t understand! If it self-destructs, we won’t get anything out of it!” Connor said with more urgency this time.

“I told you to shut your fuckin’ mouth!” Gavin yelled. “Chris, you gonna move this asshole or what?”

I looked back and forth between Gavin and Connor. Gavin looked like he was about to blow a fuckin’ gasket. But I knew Connor was right. I was about to step in, but Connor forced himself between Chris and the deviant.

“I can’t let you do that!” he exclaimed. “Leave it alone, now!”

Gavin shoved Chris aside and drew his weapon, pointing it directly at Connor’s head.

“I warned you, motherfucker!”

“Gavin, stop!” I yelled. I threw myself between him and Connor.

“That’s enough!” Hank said sternly.

“Get outta my fuckin’ way, Tera,” Gavin sneered. “Let me at this bastard.”

“No,” I said.

“I said that’s enough!” Hank said again, drawing his own gun and pointing it at Gavin. Gavin looked back and forth between me and Hank.

“What are you going to do, Gavin?” I said, staring him down. “You gonna fuckin’ shoot me?”

“Fuck.” He said through gritted teeth.

Gavin lowered his weapon and stepped back. He glared at Hank and then turned his gaze to me.

“I thought you were better than this, Washburn,” he said. The venom in his voice was palpable. “Defending a fucking android.”

Gavin stormed out of the room. I didn’t realize how fast my heart was racing until he was gone.

“Detective,” Connor said quietly. “You can let go of me now.”

“What?”

I looked down and saw that I was holding both of Connor’s wrists in my hands. My grip was so tight that my knuckles turned white. I quickly let go and stepped away. Connor turned to the deviant and kneeled down.

“Everything is alright,” he said in a soothing voice. “It’s over now. Nobody is going to hurt you.”

Connor stood up and turned to Chris.

“Please, don’t touch it. Let it follow you out of the room, and it won’t cause any trouble.”

The deviant slowly rose to its feet and began to follow Chris out of the room. It hesitated as it passed by Connor. It whispered something quietly and kept going. Finally, both the deviant and Chris were gone. Hank holstered his gun and looked at me. I always believed reading people was one of my strong suits, but I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. His expression was completely unreadable.

“I need a fuckin’ drink,” he mumbled. “See you tomorrow, Tera.”

He walked out of the room, and then it was just Connor and me. I turned to face him.

“Thank you for protecting me, Detective,” he said. “I’m not sure it was necessary, but it was brave of you.”

“No problem,” I said.

“Are you alright?” He asked.

“Um… I think so,” I answered slowly, still trying to process everything that just happened. Less than a minute ago, Gavin was pointing his gun at my head. He might have even considered pulling the trigger. Did Gavin really hate androids so much that he was willing to threaten me like that?

“What did the deviant say to you on the way out? I heard it whisper.”

Connor paused before saying anything. He looked puzzled, and his LED was flashing yellow.

“The truth is inside,” he finally answered.

“What does that mean?”

“I don’t know.”

I was starting to think that Hank was right in taking off for a drink. I was gonna need one too. I walked up to Connor and outstretched my hand.

“It was nice to work with you, Connor,” I said honestly as Connor shook my hand. His hand was surprisingly soft and warm. We left the interrogation room and headed towards the exit.

“Are you going back to Cyberlife?” I asked. Connor was stubborn and infuriating, but he was damn efficient. I was hoping that he would come back tomorrow and that the Captain would continue to let me shadow him and Hank. Connor held the door for me as I walked out of the station.

“Not yet,” he replied. “There have been more and more deviant cases like these popping up all over the city, and I’m supposed to be working on those with the DPD as well. I will be here tomorrow.”

“Great,” I said, pulling my phone out to call a taxi. “I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”


	5. Chapter 5

I was jolted from my slumber by the incessant beeping of my phone’s alarm. It was 7:30 and I needed to be at the station by 9. I rolled out of bed and went into the bathroom. By the time I had got home last night, it was well past 2 in the morning, and if yesterday was any indication, it was probably going to be just as crazy today. I checked my reflection in the mirror. I looked like absolute shit. My hair was a tangled nest, and the bags under my eyes were dark and swollen. It was obvious that I hadn’t gotten any sleep the previous night. At least I wasn’t hungover.

I took a brisk, cold shower and quickly changed into my clothes for the day: a pale blue button-up, black jeans, and my brown leather jacket. Lastly, I braided my hair, covered the bags under my eyes with some makeup, and headed towards the door.

My living room was a damn mess. There were multiple pizza boxes on the table, numerous pairs of shoes scattered near the doorway, and papers laying all over the place. Work was stressing me the hell out and it was taking a toll on me. I slipped on my boots and left for work.

I had gotten ready quicker than usual that morning, so I had plenty of time to grab breakfast on my way to the station. It was slated to be a long day and I needed the pick-me-up. I lived about a mile and a half away from the station in a tiny one bedroom apartment. The cost of living had skyrocketed in the last ten years with all this industry moving to Detroit, and even though I earned a pretty respectable amount of money, I couldn’t afford to buy a house or rent an apartment with more than one bedroom. The entire three months that Caroline and Emma were staying with me, I had to sleep on my own couch. I finally left my building and headed towards the station.

On the way, I stopped at my favorite breakfast spot, Anthony’s. Anthony’s was a small bagel joint that I frequented on my way to work. They always knew exactly what I was going to order and their bagels were always fresh. They were also one of the only places in the area that didn’t employ androids. I walked up towards the owner, Tony, who was manning the register that morning. He was an older guy, probably in his late sixties. We had known each other for years, basically since I joined the police force. Often times, he wouldn’t make me pay full price for my breakfast, and sometimes he even gave it to me for free.

“Morning, Miss Tera!” he said. “The usual?”

“You know me too well, Tony,” I said. He smiled at me and took an asiago bagel from the basket.

“How’s work?” He asked.

“It’s fine,” I said. “But a new guy started yesterday, and I’m not really sure what to make of him.”

“What’s he like?” Tony asked.

I thought for a moment about what I could say to describe Connor. I knew how much Tony didn’t like androids, and it wasn’t appropriate for me to be sharing details of our case to a random civilian.

“He’s just odd,” I said. “He’s brilliant, but he’s also stubborn and doesn’t do what he’s told.”

“Young guy?”

“You could say so,” I said. I wondered when Connor was manufactured. He said he was a prototype. He appeared to be around my age, but in reality he was probably only a few months old.

“Well, you just gotta assert yourself around those young fellas,” Tony said. “I’ve always found that they can be difficult in the long run if you wait to get them to fall in line.”

“Thanks for the advice, Tony,” I laughed.

“Be careful out there, Miss,” he said, handing me my bagel. “You have a nice day, this one’s on the house.”

I thanked him again and left for the station. The sun was already coming up when I left my apartment earlier, and by now it was starting to show through some of the taller buildings in the area. I kept walking and reached the police station at a quarter to 9.

There weren’t many people in yet, but I saw Gavin sitting at his desk with Tina, another officer at our precinct. He looked up and we made eye contact. His expression was unreadable. I narrowed my eyes at him and wondered what was going through his mind. Less than twenty-four hours ago, he was hyping me up for a promotion. Then twelve hours later I was staring down the barrel of his gun. All over the fact that I wasn’t going to let him shoot my android. He turned away and started whispering something to Tina.

Fuckin' bastard.

I peeked into Captain Fowler’s office. He was sitting at his desk with a cup of coffee in his hand. He looked tired, but he didn’t seem busy. I decided to go talk to him about last night. I reached the door and knocked on it. He pressed the button on his desk and the door slowly opened.

“Good morning, Captain,” I said as I walked in.

“Good morning, Detective Washburn,” he answered. “I was about to call you in anyway. Have a seat, please.”

He placed his coffee cup on the desk and sat up a little straighter.

“I’m glad you stopped by. I’m really pleased with how well you worked on that case last night,” he said. “I reviewed the case file, and your work was noted on more than one occasion. Dealing with that android is no small task. Hank was impressed as well.”

“He was?” I asked, trying to hide my excitement. That was high praise. Hank might have been a raging alcoholic, but he was still a good cop, and took his work seriously. Perhaps I was being eyed for a promotion after all.

“Yes,” he said. “We don’t have any new arson cases that came in this morning, so I would like you to continue shadowing him.”

“Thank you, sir!” I exclaimed. I cleared my throat and tried to relax. I couldn’t hide my excitement and I was embarrassing myself.

“I’ve forwarded the case files to your terminal. The android is coming in again today, so you may want to get a head start on reviewing those files. Speaking of which…” he said, gesturing through the glass wall of his office. “It looks like it’s already arrived.” I looked through the glass, and he was right. Connor was walking into the office, gazing all around. He must have been looking for one of us.

“Here we go,” I muttered to myself. “Excuse me, Captain.”

I left the Captain's office. Connor was wandering around the precinct, looking like lost puppy.

“Connor?”

“Good morning, Detective,” he said in a friendly voice. “It is good to see you!”

“Thanks, Connor,” I said.

“Has Lieutenant Anderson arrived yet?” he asked.

“No.”

“What time does he usually arrive?”

“Depends on where he’s been the night before,” I replied. “We’re lucky if he gets here before noon. Come on, I’ll take you to his desk.”

I led Connor over to Hank’s desk, which was across the aisle from mine. I took a seat at my desk and straightened my nameplate. Connor sat down in the chair that was next to Hank’s desk. I glanced over at him. He was sitting up perfectly straight with his hands resting on his knees. It looked so unnatural that it was kind of hilarious. I guessed Cyberlife couldn’t get _everything_ about human behavior right.

I turned on my work tablet and started looking over the files that the Captain sent me. There were dozens, maybe even hundreds of them. Were we expected to deal with all of these? As I scrolled, I noticed Connor stand up and start looking over all the stuff on Hank’s desk. I glanced at all the anti-android stickers that were covering the desk dividers next to his terminal. Connor must have seen them by now as well. Other than Hank, I was the only detective in the precinct that had negative personal experience with androids. However, I didn’t have the same level of disdain that Hank did. I wondered if that was why I was riding along on these investigations. Maybe I was supposed to be keeping an eye on Hank as well as Connor.

“Detective?”

“What is it, Connor?” I asked.

“Why does the Lieutenant hate androids so much?” Connor asked. I took a long, deep breath before answering.

“That’s his story to tell, not mine.”

“Understood.”

Connor continued his search through Hank’s desk. I figured he wasn’t doing it with malicious intent, but I was glad that Hank wasn’t there to see Connor digging through his things. He would’ve been pissed. Almost as if on cue, Hank walked into the station. Connor practically jumped for joy.

“It’s good to see you, Lieutenant!” he exclaimed.

“Ah, Jesus,” Hank groaned.

“Hank! In my office!” called the Captain from his office.

Hank glanced over at me and rolled his eyes. He didn’t always hate the Captain. Everybody in the precinct knew that. But he had changed since Cole died.

“You can just hang out here,” I told Connor as Hank walked to the Captain’s office. “I’ll download all the case files to your terminal and you can have a look at them until Hank comes back out.”

“If you don’t mind Detective, I think I’ll have a look around the office while you’re downloading them.”

“Knock yourself out,” I said. I opened my terminal and shared the case files with the terminal at the empty desk across from Hank’s. I glanced over my shoulder to see what was happening in the Captain’s office. Clearly it was a very heated discussion. I decided to try to make myself another cup of coffee. Maybe I would be able to make a decent cup this time. I picked up my tablet and headed to the break room. As soon as I got there, I saw Gavin sock Connor right in the stomach.

“Gavin, what the fuck?!” I exclaimed, rushing over to them. I knelt down next to Connor.

“If she hadn’t gotten in the way yesterday, I would’ve fucked you up for disobeying a human,” Gavin whispered menacingly, pointing at me. I glared at him and looked back at Connor.

“Are you okay?” I asked him quietly.

“Oh, this is fuckin’ rich,” Gavin said, laughing. “Stay outta my way, android, or next time you won’t get off so easily.”

I helped Connor to his feet as Gavin stormed out of the room. Tina followed him, glancing back at Connor as she went. I didn’t even realize that she was in the room. Connor straightened his tie and shook his head.

“Are you okay, Connor?” I asked.

“I’m fine, Detective.”

“I’m going to go talk to him,” I said. “Just try to stay out of trouble for the next five minutes.”

I hurried out of the break room and after Gavin.

“Gavin!” I said, grabbing his shoulder. He whipped around quickly and shoved my hand off his shoulder.

“Don’t fuckin’ touch me,” he said, getting up in my face.

“Gavin, shut up and listen to me for one goddamn minute,” I said sternly. “Don’t hit Connor.”

“I outrank you, Tera,” he snarled. “So, I don’t fucking answer to you. If you want to protect your plastic boyfriend over there, that’s fine, but don’t come crying to me when he ends up replacing you first.”

I clenched my fists. I wanted to beat that stupid look off his face, but I needed to be the bigger person. And any amount of satisfaction that sucker-punching Gavin could give me wouldn’t be worth the disciplinary warning I would get because of it.

“Look,” I said. “If you break him, they’re gonna make you pay to replace him. Another Connor will be here tomorrow, and you’ll be out at least a year’s salary. And I don’t think you want that.”

I turned back and walked to the break room. Connor was standing in the doorway, holding a coffee cup.

“Look, Connor,” I said. “Gavin is a fucking asshole, but I’m a cop, not a babysitter. I can’t be defending you from him all the time. In the future, try to stay away from him, please.”

My phone buzzed, so I pulled it out of my pocket. It was a text from Caroline.

_Call me!_

“I already downloaded the case files to your terminal,” I told Connor. “Why don’t you go take a look at them? I need to make a phone call.”

“Wait, Detective,” Connor said. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to be a distraction from your duties. I made this for you. Consider it a peace offering. Thank you for looking out for me.”

Connor handed me the cup of coffee he was holding and walked back to Hank’s desk. He must have noticed how badly I had screwed up my own coffee yesterday and went to make me a new cup. I didn’t realize androids could be thoughtful like that. I tucked my tablet under my arm, pulled out my phone and called Caroline.

“Hello?”

“Hey Caroline, it’s me,” I said.

“Hey,” she said. “Are you busy?”

“I’m about to leave on assignment, but that depends on when Hank is ready to go,” I said, taking a sip of my coffee. “We have a… special guest on this investigation, so it’s making things a little more complicated.”

“What kind of special guest?” I asked.

“Hold on a second,” I said, hurrying into the bathroom. I checked each of the stalls to make sure that I was alone before I said anything.

“So, are you going to tell me who this special guest is?” Caroline asked. I took a deep breath before I spoke again.

“It’s an android,” I said quietly. There was a long pause before Caroline responded.

“Why the hell are they making you work with an android?” she asked. I could hear her voice trembling. Given everything that her family had been through, she was still terrified of androids.

“Cyberlife sent it,” I explained as gently as I could. “It’s supposed to help us investigate androids like Daniel. It’s so what happened to John doesn’t happen again.”

“Can’t you request a different assignment?” she asked. “I’m worried about you. You shouldn’t be working with androids. They can’t be trusted.”

“Caroline,” I sighed. “It’s not that simple. I need to do well on this assignment so I can get that promotion I’ve been working so hard for. I’ll be careful, I promise. The android that’s helping us- I’m sure he’s like that hostage negotiator. I trust him.”

“And I trusted Daniel.”

The line went dead. She hung up on me, so I put my phone back in my pocket. I’d have to call her again later.

Caroline’s anxiety was understandable, and honestly, I was still a little uneasy about the idea of working this closely with an android, but I didn’t have any concerns about Connor. At least not yet. I downed the rest of my coffee and splashed my face with some water from the sink. I wiped my face with a paper towel and looked at my reflection in the mirror. I had been at the station for less than an hour and a half and already had to deal with multiple annoyances, but at least I didn’t look like a corpse. I tossed the coffee cup and checked my tablet. There was a notification on the home page.

_URGENT: SUSPECTED DEVIANT - AX400_

I opened the file and started to read through it. It looked like there had been a murder in one of the more run-down suburbs of the city, and the suspect was a deviant AX400. It was spotted in Ravendale last night. We needed to get down there as soon as possible.

I rushed out of the bathroom and into the office, just in time to see Hank slam Connor against the wall of his cubicle.

“Listen asshole,” he snarled. “If it were up to me, I’d throw the lot of you in the dumpster and set a match to it. So, stop pissing me off or things are gonna get nasty!”

“Lieutenant,” I said hesitantly.

Hank relaxed slowly and let go of Connor.

“Uh… sorry to disturb you,” I said, tentatively reaching out towards Hank. “I have some information about the AX400 that killed that guy last night. It’s been seen in the Ravendale district. We should leave soon.”

“I’m on it,” he snapped.

Hank shot one last dirty look at Connor and stormed off. Hopefully he was headed to his car. Connor loosened up his shoulders and straightened his tie.

“For fuck’s sake, man,” I said. “What did I literally just say to you?”

“To be fair,” he said, “it wasn’t Detective Reed that time.”

“So, they program jokes now?” I asked.

“I’m designed to work harmoniously with humans,” he said. “Humor can be a part of that.”

“Well, considering how many run-ins you’ve had already, I think it’s safe to say that Cyberlife fucked that design up,” I said. Connor looked down at his feet apologetically. He almost seemed embarrassed.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “That was rude. Let’s go catch a murderer.”

“Okay,” he replied, offering me a half-smile and heading after Hank.

“And Connor?”

“Yes?” He paused and turned towards me.

“Thanks for the coffee.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay on this! I had finals and a whole bunch of other crazy life things happening, so I wasn't able to write at all. Thanks for the love <3

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic ever, so I'd love any feedback you might have!! Please be gentle :D I'm not sure if anybody is going to read this or if it's worth pursuing, so let me know if you like it and want to read more! Going forward, I'm taking some liberties with dialogue and plot, but I will do my best to stick with the Detroit story that we all love so much!! <3 WE ARE ALIVE!


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